Albert Baldwin Wood and his screw pumps modernized New Orleans by bringing flood-free streets and cleaner water to the city while providing the potential for growth by pumping swamp lands dry. While Wood was never part of the local Progressive movement, his work with the pumps fit with Progressive initiatives for modernization. At first, the screw pumps removed rain water from the streets. Then New Orleans expanded the drainage to include sewerage removal and water purification. The pumps successfully drained thousands of acres of land once considered uninhabitable swamp land. This additional land extended New Orleans city limits but also aided in the acceleration of residential segregation. Cities from around the world used the designs for the screw pump and consulted Wood for advice on drainage systems.

Access

Unrestricted;

Degree

M.A.;

Degree Program

History;

Department

Dept. of History;

Major Professor

Mitchell, Mary N.

Advisory Committee

Atkinson, Connie; Dupont, Robert

Date Degree Awarded

2010-12-17

Format

PDF

URL

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Rights

The University of New Orleans and its agents retain the non-exclusive license to archive and make accessible this dissertation or thesis in whole or in part in all forms of media, now or hereafter known. The author retains all other ownership rights to the copyright of the thesis or dissertation.